Damien's First-Ever Class Experience with Ready Steady Go Kids

My happy and satisfied student with Coach Sonny Calingo of Ready Steady Go Kids Philippines

Damien is my youngest son who is almost three years of age. He's in a stage when he's enjoying his independent exploration (or so he thought but my superMOMpower eyes and ears are all on him) and is very ~~hyper~~active.

Damien's first-ever mini obstacle course activity

Hop and move! Finishing the activity during his first day

I really don't want him to go to a formal traditional/progressive/Montessori pre-school at an early stage because I really believe that toddlers should be free to play. They learn a lot through play. Play develops children's imaginations, socialization, motor skills, and even critical thinking. Play even teaches them the values of sharing, kindness, openness, and respect.

Until Ready Steady Go Kids (RSGK) Philippines was recommended to me.

Their Ready Steady Go class huddle

At first, I was hesitant but when I researched about RSGK, I was impressed with their program tailor-fit to pre-schoolers age 2.5 to 6yo. It is a multi-sport and exercise program designed for pre-schoolers that complements academics through benefits derived from active learning.

With Day 1 of Damien's RSGK class, I was already extremely pleased with what both Damien and I discovered, mostly about him. It's true when they say, never underestimate your children's capabilities even at such a young age. I am guilty I did and Ready Steady Go Kids proved me wrong about my son's ability to follow other people's instructions. My son participated, engaged, and followed instructions from the class' head coach, Coach Sonny.

Coach Sonny personally trains these little athletes to finish the courses set for them each class

Damien following simple instructions and participating in his class

THE READY STEADY GO KIDS PROGRAMME:

For pre-schoolers age 2.5 to 6 years old
Multi-sport and exercise program
10 sessions of 45 to 50 minutes each
3 Class types:

Ready (2 - 3yo)
Steady (3 - 4yo)
Go (4 - 6yo)

Five sports to cover 10 sessions (Ex. Football, Tennis, Basketball, Soccer, Athletics)
Uses sporting equipment designed especially for pre-school aged children

BENEFITS:

Introduce children to a variety of (10) different sports in a structured, safe, inclusive and non-competitive environment.
Teach children that sport and physical activity are fun.
Introduce and encourage age-appropriate gross motor skills, body awareness and correct posture at all times.
Teach children the importance of warm-up and stretching to help prevent injuries.
Teach the importance of good sportsmanship and teamwork when playing sport and games.
Teach children the following values:

Confidence and Competence
Life Skills (take turns, play by the rules, and cooperation)
Readiness for school
Healthy Lifestyle
Basic knowledge of sports

MEMORABLE PERSONAL EXPERIENCE:

For a toddler like mine, I really thought he wasn't ready any type of class. I underestimated my child, yep, guilty as charged. RSGK didn't only teach my child the promised values in their program but it also taught me to trust my child's capabilities.

PEOPLE-PERSON

That was what Coach Sonny described my son during his first day. Shy isn't part of his vocabulary. He said HI to everyone, he approached Coach Sonny. He made himself feel at ease and didn't wait on anyone to welcome him. As per coach, your son is in character!

SPIDEY

Damien was known as Spidey, the toddler who acts as if he has web shooters on both his hands during their classes, the toddler who imagines he just saved someone from danger whenever he completed a task. Coach Sonny seems to be an experienced preschool educator and who knows exactly how to call the kids' attention and make them follow his instructions. He called my son Spidey to get his attention and he succeeded each time.

Coach Sonny calls him Spidey, here he is doing his Spider-Man pose

FUN ACTIVITIES
Each class was a unique experience for Damien and the other toddlers. Yes, different sports were taught in classes. Basketball or throwing balls is something familiar to my son. It was easy for him to get the ball, shoot it. He also experienced golf in a make-up class he attended one time. Catching rings was one of his favorites too. But what was consistent in all classes was the mini obstacle course where the kids wait for turns and finish the course. Physically, the course involved hopping, bending, balancing, use of the whole body (those cute and soft little hands, feet, and legs), and hand-feet-eye coordination. Mentally, the course taught kids colors, counting, and shapes.

Basketball time. Damien waiting for his turn. He waited miraculously! :)

Again with his Spidey signature pose

Valle Verde make-up class where he experienced playing golf

VALUES-FORMING
I love that the classes made my son become familiarized about the environment and the other kids he socialized. I love that he listened, participated, cooperated, waited for his turn (but honestly still has to be improved, after all, he's the youngest in his class) and finished tasks. I was surprised that he followed instructions, it was easy to teach him. Damien developed camaraderie and be more helpful. He was trained to help pack away toys and for any mom, that's an awesome thing to learn in classes such as this. Life skills learning unfolded right before me! He responds well to Coach Sonny and coach assistants because he felt safe with them. He trusted Coach Sonny and I do too!

Let me smell those kili-kili love! :)

SAFETY
Safety is RSGK's priority. The bunch of equipment they used was safe for preschool-aged children. To give you a clearer idea, they made use of the following:

Usual sports equipment used in a RSGK class

Balls (soft basketballs, tennis balls, and plastic golf balls)
Hoops/rings
Hurdles
Silicone hand-shaped markers (as part of obstacle course tasks)
Stuffed cloth,
Cones

EXPERIENCED/TRUST-WORTHY/RELIABLE COACHES

Hands down to Coach Sonny Calingo's patience for children (especially spirited toddlers like mine), energy to keep activities going from one class to another, and his undeniable passion to teach little children the values of sportsmanship and active learning. He never gave up on little ones who were straying at times or not eager to finish their tasks. He finds a way to engage the small children by either calling them with their favorite character (such as Spidey for my toddler and another girl who was Elsa of Frozen).

Coach Sonny Calingo and Damien. Thanks Coach!

He talks to parents and caretakers and explains bits of what the activities are for. He acts like the second dad of the kids, no wonder the kids love him. He's so animated when telling stories during cool down.

Damien loves a good story! Coach Sonny tells an animated story about The Boy Who Cried Wolf

He's always pleasant, always smiling, always positive, and has a great command of the English language with a matching well-modulated voice to catch the attention of preschoolers who have short span of it. I only have good and kind words for Coach Sonny and he's a memorable coach for my son. My son really likes him. I would also like to commend the coach assistants for their patience and pleasing personalities. Congratulations!

Coach Peachy of Valle Verde class with Damien as she teaches him to handle the club and hit the ball

Valle Verde make-up class

VENUE
RSGK has partner schools all over the metro. They have schools located in Makati, Mandaluyong, San Juan, Pasig, Quezon City, South (Paranaque, Las Pinas, and Muntinlupa), and Taguig City. I chose a venue close to home, Kinder Explorers in M. Paterno St., San Juan. I love the venue which has ample space for fun outdoor activities. The venue is not too big and not too small. I also was able to experience their Valle Verde venue, but found it too big for my son, that he just wanted to run all over the place and was distracted by the swimming pool beside the court. He loves swimming kasi.

I love the perfect size of their school partner, Kinder Explorers San Juan venue.

A HAPPY AND SATISFIED LEARNER
In a short span of Damien's experience going to his first-ever class, he already learned a lot. He was trained to follow a routine, to follow instructions, to pack away, to be helpful, to be sociable, to be friendly, to respect others, and to communicate. His energies were also used up productively through kiddie sports as part of the Ready Steady Go Kids program. He learned the value of finishing tasks and waiting for his turn.

Damien's always smiling whenever Coach Sonny would personally teach him! Proof preschoolers could really learn a lot through play and with great guidance from a competent and patient coach.

Though his vocabulary is still very limited, he wasn't timid to approach other kids and talk to them in garbled words, as if they really meant substantially. Indeed he was in his Spidey alter-ego when he's in RSGK class because Coach Sonny made him believe he really was Spidey. This encouraged him to finish the tasks and aim for the goals in each activity. Indeed, the summer class was helpful in preparing my son for bigger things. The program indeed armed my son with skills he will need when he enters formal schooling in a few months or in another year. My son is a happy learner and I'm a highly satisfied mom with the benefits that we both got from his RSGK classes.

Should you be interested to set up your children for great benefits of the Ready Steady Go Kids program or for inquiries and more details, you may visit their website http://readysteadygokids.com.ph/ or follow them on social media too:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ReadySteadyGoKidsPhilippines/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/RSGKphilippines/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/RSGKphilippines

Louise Antonette

Hi, I'm Louise Fandiño Santos, a wife, a mom of all boys and a campaigns strategist by profession. My family, singing, flowers, chocolates, coffee, and traveling make me happy. I passionately blog about pretty and practical things and choices concerning motherhood, relationships, food, travel, events, and shopping. MORE?